


Radioactive cocktails taste bitter

by DConan010



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Best Friends, Dark May Parker (Spider-Man), Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Experiment gone wrong, Field Trip, Gen, Hospitalization, Human Experimentation, Hurt Peter Parker, I'm Sorry, Implied/Referenced Abuse, May Parker is crazy, My First AO3 Post, Origin Story, Orphan Peter Parker, Oscorp - Freeform, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker Whump, Poison, Triggers, ben doesn't exist
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-07
Updated: 2019-04-28
Packaged: 2019-11-13 09:56:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,237
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18029516
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DConan010/pseuds/DConan010
Summary: May and Richard Parker finally finished their research, but will they reach what they wanted? Or does fate have a different ending in mind?//A story in which Peter has to learn that life isn't as easy as everyone thinks it is.





	1. The experiment

**Author's Note:**

> Hellooo! This is my first story on AO3 so I sincerely hope I did everything right.  
> It might get a bit dark in the first chapter, but oh well. Some things have to happen to get the story moving.  
> I hope you'll enjoy^^

Two scientists by the names of Mary and Richard Parker were currently celebrating their newest breakthrough.

For multiple years now they were searching for various processes to enhance the human species. Nothing too major though as they didn’t want the gap between certain people to widen more than it currently already is in the process of.

Instead, they focused on small enhancements like slightly faster metabolisms and increased strength or enhanced immune systems and resistance to certain outer health threats. Changing humanity only ever so slightly to make life a bit easier and fulfilling.

Their latest experiments were all successful, so they decided to move on in their research. The next step was a big one.

They now had to test their findings on human test subjects. The legal resources they had to spend on making sure every single requirement was met was enormous. Then there was the issue of finding willing subjects.

It was their luck that Mary’s sister May was the first person that supported their research.

May was a friendly person, often closer to an angel than another human being. She used her free time to give back to the community and simultaneously educating herself on various topics in life. She was pure and genuine. Always putting Mary and Richard first.

Therefore, it came to no surprise that she immediately offered her help when her sister told her about the newest developments.

Though she actually was not the first person willing to take on the role of the human test subject. Richard Parker himself was more than eager to personally experience the tests. Mary was the person to stop his endeavor which was to be expected.

They had a young son, Peter. With his only 4 years, Mary wanted to minimalize the risk of him losing his father this early in life. So, she was strictly putting her husband back into his place telling him to think about their son. May seemed to realize their predicament and offered her help. She trusted her family.

 

On the day of the actual test, the pair again checked their proceeding findings and crosschecked every tiny piece of information threefold. They were ready as can be. Even May was helping to revise their preparations. There was nothing left to check, nothing left to criticize, nothing left to rework. Everything was ready and waiting for them to finally get started.

So that’s what they did.

Mary led her sister to lay on a gurney and connected various electrodes and hooked them up to a monitor. Meanwhile, Richard was getting the chemicals ready.

“Are you sure you really want to do this?” asked Mary her sister.

She plainly nodded and told her to not worry and just focus on the test.

They continued to prepare until it was finally time to start the procedure. Richard transferred the chemical mixture from the vile to a syringe and felt for a vain.

“Ready?” he asked not only May but also his wife and himself. All of them were hopeful, curious and motivated.

“Go ahead,” May smiled.

She was happy she could help her family. This whole research was everything to Richard and Mary. They were proud and determined to finish what they started and help humanity to evolve ever so slightly. So of course, they were ready. It took them six years of research to get to this point. They were confident. In those six years, they looked at everything a hundred times. And they were happy to reach this point together.

Richard lowly administered his sister in law the chemical cocktail and immediately checked her vitals, followed by a chart he now held in his hands. It was a routine he quickly adapted. Mary too checked everything once in a while but put her main focus on her sister beside her.

“You okay? Please tell us immediately if something feels off,” she half begged her.

“Don’t worry so much. I’m fine. More than fine actually. I feel great.” She smiled.

Richard stopped his routine for a moment to look at his wife half skeptical. Mary did the same. They were both happy and anxious. Somehow though they felt a sense of dread washing over them. Something seemed wrong. May was almost ecstatic, intoxicated even. This shouldn’t be the case. She wasn’t supposed to feel anything change or display any change in behavior. It was nothing major, which somehow calmed them down a bit, but still, the worry was predominant.

They made sure to check her behavior every other minute but continued with the experiment anyway. It wouldn’t change anything if they stopped early as the reaction was already showing.

They kept on watching her and her vitals over the next 30 minutes. This was the time they set for the experiment to last.

“You are done,” Richard told May while checking over his chart one last time.

“How do you feel now?” May blinked a few times before answering.

“Still the same. Pretty much perfect.” She smiled.

Mary took her hand and looked at her sternly. “Remember what I told you before? If something changes, tell us immediately. This also includes the next few days. You know my number, you know our address. Just please get in touch if something feels weird, okay?”

May nodded. Relieved from the electrodes she got up to leave. “I hope I was of some help to you two,” she said and left while grinning.

Richard walked to be next to his wife who was still standing beside the gurney where her sister laid only seconds before.

“You also noticed, right?” He put his hand on her shoulder.

“Her behavior? Of course. She was too calm. Even her heartrate was pretty low considering she should have been nervous.”

He agreed. “It was almost like she was in a daze. We have to keep our eyes on her.”

 

 

A few days passed and both Richard and Mary were almost certain everything was okay with May. Though they still had the slightest sliver of doubt they were calm. Her behavior was normal again and she said that she felt okay. She didn’t seem dazed like before as well, reassuring the scientists.

Peter was currently at kindergarten leaving both Mary and Richard alone in their home when suddenly their doorbell rang. Mary quickly checking who was visiting them opened the door when she saw her sister standing there.

“Hey May. Come on inside,” Mary led her into the living room where Richard was already at.

“You okay? Can I get you something?”

“No, no,” May instantly reassured them that she was indeed fine. “There is nothing you can do for me,” she said which confused them.

“What do you mean?” Richard piped up.

“Well,” she started, “I don’t think you can ever do something for me again.”

Now they were worried. “May? What’s going on?”

All three of them were now standing in the middle of the room. Mary and Richard looking panicked.

“You have done enough.” She lifted her shirt to reveal a gun strapped to her waist.

Richard immediately pushed Mary to stand behind him while trying to talk to his sister in law. “I’m not sure why you are doing what you are doing right now, but we can talk about it. Don’t you think so?” He tried his best to shield his wife.

May, on the other hand, had other thoughts. “There is nothing to talk about. You are going to die, and you will do so now.” She took the gun, pointed it at Richard and pulled the trigger.

He instantly dropped to the floor, blood pooling around his head. Mary started to cry hysterically while her sister menacingly laughed.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Mary screamed at her. “You killed him, you monster!”

May’s laughter stopped. “Me? A monster? You made me who I am now. If anyone is a monster, it is you and your fucking husband.”

Mary began to shiver, cradling the lifeless body of the man she loved in her arms. “So, what are you going to do? Kill me too? Your only family?”

May grinned threateningly. “You really think you can talk your way out of your demise? I don’t think so.”

The gun now pointed at Mary’s head. “Say goodbye to the world. And don’t forget little Peter. He is next.”

Her eyes widened. “Don’t you dare lay a hand on Peter! You are-”

The bullet flying through her skull stopped her from finishing what she wanted to say. There was no chance she could have survived. May stopped and looked at what she did seconds before. She was smiling at the blood flooding the living room floor.

“Don’t worry, dear sister,” she said while kneeling down. “I’m not going to kill him just yet. He will suffer eventually. But I will wait.”

 

 

It didn’t take long for the officials to notice the gruesome scene in the Parker household.

After both parents failed to show up at the kindergarten to pick up Peter, the teachers called the police. They went to check the house and found both Mary and Richard Parker dead in their living room. Immediately they started investigating. But there were no signs of forced entry and nothing seemed to have been stolen, they were stumped. It almost looked like a double suicide or a murder-suicide. But having no gun on sight busted the theory.

Instead, they secured the house and started investigating further. They also drove to the kindergarten where Peter was still at to tell the teachers about the situation.

“Hey, sport,” one of the officers kneeled down to meet Peter’s eyes. “Did you have fun today?”

Peter smiled and nodded yes.

“I’ve got something to tell you.” The officer put one hand on his little shoulder. “Something happened at home, while you were here. Your mom and dad, Peter, they both died.”

Peter looked confused. “What do you mean? They won’t come get me? Did I do something wrong?”

The officer shook his head. “No, Peter. You have done nothing wrong. You see, the thing is, they will never come to pick you up again. It’s not that they don’t want to or that you have done something, it’s that they can’t. They are in heaven now.”

With that, Peter started to cry. “They won’t ever come back? Never? Never ever?”

“I’m sorry. Come here.” He opened his arms and waited for Peter to hug him, which he didn’t hesitate to do so.

 

The teachers at the kindergarten now called his aunt May to come and pick him up. Simultaneously the officers wanted to tell her about what seemed to have occurred at her sister’s house.

It only took 30 Minutes for May to arrive at the kindergarten. Seemingly taken aback as to why police were waiting for her.

“Hello. I’m May Parker. What’s going on if I may ask? You told me to come here.”

One of the teachers turned to the frantic aunt. “Peter is inside with one of the officers, so you won’t have to worry about him. But I suggest you talk to lieutenant Milone over there. He is in charge of everything it seems.” The teacher pointed to a man standing beside a police vehicle talking to two officers.

May thanked her and walked toward the car. “I’m sorry to interrupt, but I was told to talk to you, lieutenant Milone.”

Said man turned around to see the overwhelmed woman in front of him. “And you are?” he asked her.

“May Parker, sir. I hoped you could tell me what’s going on. Why is there so much police here?”

Quickly he told the two officers to leave and was now focused solely on May. “There is no easy way to tell you, but this morning at around 11:20 am your sister and her husband were shot.”

She interrupted the man. “Oh my god. Are they okay? How? How did that happen?” Tears started to collect in her eyes.

“I’m sorry to tell you they passed away. There was nothing we could do when we found them. We are still investigating and are unsure as to how it happened exactly. There are some things that don’t quite line up, but I promise you, we will find out what happened.”

May was by now full on crying. “Oh no. I can’t believe it. Why would someone do something like that? They did nothing wrong. They were such a perfect little family. Does Peter know? Did you tell him already? What are we going to do about him? He is only four years old. They were everything he had.”

Lieutenant Milone tried calming her down. “Mam, please. Yes, we did tell him, and he seemed to have understood us. And to be honest with you, we thought about what to do with the boy and hoped that you as his aunt could take him in. If you can’t he will have to be introduced to the foster care system and we all sincerely hope to keep that from happening.” He looked at her and tried to smile reassuringly. “I’m really sorry for your loss, mam, but I and the rest of the team hope that you can take in Peter. Usually, in cases like this one, children recover better if they are with family.”

May looked towards the building in which Peter was still at and dried some of her tears with her sleeve. “Yes of course. He is such a sweetheart who deserves only the best in life. It hurts me to think he will have to grow up without his parents. Thank you, lieutenant. I suppose he is still inside? May I go to him now? Or do you still need us for something?” She was crying slightly.

“Oh no. Go on ahead. He needs you right now. And don’t worry about any legal issues, for now, mam. We will handle everything for the moment.”

She thanked him and made his way to Peter who was still with the officer who first talked to him.

 

“Hey, honey.” She knelt beside the small boy who was still sniffling.

“Aunt May. They said Mum and Dad will never come back.”

“Yeah, I know, Pete. They told me the same. But don’t worry. You are going to stay with me, and we will both do our best, right?” She smiled at him. “We will make Mum and Dad proud, what do you say?”

Peter broke his staredown with the floor and looked at his aunt. “Making them proud? I like that.”

He took her hand and said goodbye to his teachers. May too thanked them and led Peter to her car. It was a rough day for everyone, and they deserved their rest. So, May took Peter home after rambling a swift goodbye to lieutenant Milone who was still standing near the parking lot.


	2. Changing Times

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time moved on and so did his feelings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 2!
> 
> I'm trying weekly uploads for now but who knows how long I can actually keep up with it. I'm pretty busy at the moment so please excuse any delays in uploads. But enough of that.
> 
> Enjoy the next chapter!
> 
> P.s I promise it's not bloody

It has been 8 years ever since tragedy struck. Peter lived with his aunt ever since that fateful day. Both of them seemed to have adjusted to staying together fairly quickly. Though Peter still somewhat missed his parents from time to time, he loved spending time with his aunt. He liked her even before everything happened, so it came to no surprise that his affection toward May stayed unchanged. 

But ever since starting middle school, Peter sometimes had the impression May did in fact not like him very much. Usually, when they were in the same room or were holding conversations everything seemed fine. It only happened when May didn’t notice Peter was still watching her. She then dropped her smile and somewhat angrily looked at pictures or random items in her general vicinity. It freaked him out a little, but he didn’t say anything. Instead, he went on his routine as if nothing changed. Maybe he wanted to convince himself that everything was still fine.

School itself was all right. The stuff he learned in class was fairly easy to understand. Peter’s problems with school were on a more interpersonal level. He did not have any friends. That’s how it’s supposed to be, he told himself. Peter was smart, really smart even, but he was a shy scrawny kid who wore classes and science pun shirts. All in all, the perfect target to be bullied. It wasn’t anything major. He just happened to be a nerd who presented himself as a target for stronger students. It never got physical and even the name calling in itself did not happen often. Peter was okay. But a few weeks into the new school year he was certain he wanted to attend a STEM high school when he graduated from middle school. He was sure that being a nerd wasn’t going to be a problem at a science-oriented school. So, starting then he wanted to try staying in the background as much as possible. He could manage the last 1.5 years of middle school fine that way. It was only 1.5 years until he could move on. 1.5 years.

 

Needless to say, those 1.5 years passed in a flash. He was now a freshman in high school. And to his more or less surprise, he was accepted at Midtown School of Science and Technology in Forest Hills. It was his dream school, that only a handful of people were accepted to each year. Peter was over the moon. He was fantasizing about going to Midtown Science High ever since starting middle school. So now attending it was incredible.  
There was one thing though, that was concerning. May still seemed to dislike her nephew. It might even have changed for the worse. It happened more often now that her face slipped into a contortion of pure disgust. Peter grew more and more concerned. He feared that he did something wrong. Something that could fuel his aunt’s hatred. So, he tried his best in both school and the social department. He even supported May with everything he could regarding the household. But nothing he did seemed to matter. Thus, he tried not thinking about it.  
School life was better than he ever imagined. He quickly found a new best friend, Ned Leeds, who he spends almost all day with. They instantly connected. 

And even though he hoped that bullying wasn’t going to be an issue, there was this one guy, who called himself Flash, who was still calling him names. Mainly the reason as to why he did, was the fact that Peter entered school with the highest marks in his year. He was a nerd, even at a nerd school. But Peter didn’t mind. He had his friend Ned who he could confine to and who would listen to everything he was told. They even discovered a mutual liking to Legos early on. So, quite often after school they would meet up and build all kinds of structures with Legos.

Generally, school was fun. He attended multiple after class activities, including the school’s band and decathlon. And even though it didn’t happen all too often he was challenged in class. It was a major upgrade from what he studied in middle school.

“Hey, Peter!” Ned called across the hall. “What are you doing after school today?” 

“Ah, not much really. I’ve got band practice though. Why you ask?” Peter closed his locker to see Ned standing beside him. 

“Just curious. Actually, wanna come over to my house after band? We never got to finish our last building battle.” He grinned.

“Sure. Just gotta make sure May is okay with it. You know how she is.” Peter turned around to walk to their next class. Therefore, he didn’t see Ned frowning.

“Yeah, ok. Tell me, did something else happen yesterday?” He walked fast to be beside his best friend. Peter told him yesterday that his aunt seemed kind of on the edge. It wasn’t that she didn’t talk to Peter at all, but she did frown more than smiled, which was concerning. It almost seemed like she was planning something. What it was, Peter didn’t know. He started to be scared of May. He even stopped talking about her being his aunt and only called her by her name. She didn’t know, she wasn’t supposed to know. 

“No, nothing really. Just the same old.” He brushed off the question and kept walking to his next class. Ned stopped him. 

“Remember that you can tell me if something happens, okay? I’m here for you, dude.” Peter smiled at that. It was still somewhat strange to him, that he now had someone he called a friend who he could confine to. And he liked it. In middle school, he often felt left alone. Now with Ned, he had a lot more fun doing regular stuff. 

The next class passed in a breeze. But before the bell rang, the teacher cleared his throat in order to announce something. 

“Settle down, class. School isn’t over yet and I’ve got something to tell you guys.” 

That shut up the whole class. Everyone was curious to hear what their teacher had to say. 

“I know it’s still pretty early in the year, so it’s a little sudden. But we were given a great opportunity, which we honestly could not turn down. So, I’ve got a field trip planned for us. And now before you all start interrupting me to talk to your friends about it,” he swiftly added. “We are going to see Oscorp. I’ve got permission slips over here, so please take one when you leave and get it signed as soon as possible. We need those slips back before the field trip on Tuesday.” With a nod, he dismissed his class and left them to talk about the announcement. 

“What the! Are they for real?” Peter turned to his best friend. “I mean Oscorp? Wow.” Both Peter and Ned were astonished. It rarely ever happened that high schools were allowed to visit major science companies. So, them being part of this small percentage that was allowed to visit one, was crazy. Everyone was freaking out with excitement. It almost didn’t seem real.

“I really hope May will allow me to go. I honestly don’t know what she’ll say.” Peter frowned. It was true. In the last few weeks, she changed more and more. By now he was pretty sure she did not like him, disliked him even. She never did anything tough. She mostly ignored him or looked at him funny. But all of that was enough for Peter to be cautious of May. 

“Yeah, dude, I know. You want me to be there when you tell her?” Ned asked his friend. Peter just shrugged.

“I guess it’ll all be fine. I mean what can she do? The worst she could do is say no.” He shuddered. Peter didn’t even want to imagine not being able to go on the trip. “Yeah, no. No way that will happen,” he tried reassuring himself. 

“If she really says no, I’ll stay back with you. It honestly wouldn’t be fun without you, Peter.” Ned put a hand on Peter’s shoulder. 

“Thanks, dude. But you don’t have to. I’ll make sure I can go.” With new determination, he left the classroom to go to his band practice. Ned went home. They decided it wouldn’t be a good idea to meet up today after they got the news about the field trip. Peter needed the time to talk to his aunt and convince her to let him go. They did agree to call after the talk though. 

 

Three hours later, Peter was pacing in his room, trying to gather the courage to talk to May. It’s not like she would punch him or something like that, just for bringing up the trip. She wasn’t like that. Peter didn’t see a single possibility that May would actually get physical. He was still scared either way.  
There was no use to keep pacing, Peter decided. He just had to quickly ask her. So, he went to the living room where his aunt was currently at. 

“Hey, May?” he asked her carefully. “There was an announcement at school today.” 

She looked at him with a mixture of confusion and anticipation. “Yeah?”

“Yes! Well you see.” He stumbled over his own words. Before he could continue, he noticed May was growing annoyed. “My class has a field trip scheduled next Tuesday. They gave us permission slips to sign.” He pulled out the paper from behind his back. May eyed it suspiciously.

“Where to?” She again looked at Peter. 

“Oscorp.” He fumbled with the paper. “It’s pretty much a once in a lifetime opportunity and I really want to go. Ned is also going to be there. I could learn so much.” He tried pushing every single button to get her to sign the slip. 

May was silent. She didn’t look like she was thinking about what she was going to do. Instead, she seemed like she wanted Peter to stay on edge just a bit longer. A few moments passed when she finally sighed.

“Okay,” she said. “You can go. Give me the paper, I’ll sign it.” 

More shocked than surprised, Peter gave May the permission slip to sign. She immediately did and gave him back the paper. “Don’t lose it. I won’t sign another one,” she threatened him.

“I won’t!” he squeaked determined to never misplace the paper. He decided to hand it in the very next day so that there wouldn’t even be the slightest chance of him losing it. “Thank you, May!” He turned on his heal and quickly ran back to his room.

It took him a second to breathe. Fear, he realized it was. He didn’t expect to be scared of May. This wasn’t about what she was going to say, it was about the person that was sitting in front of him only a moment ago. Why was he scared? He knew she would never do anything to him. So, why was he so scared of her?

He stopped thinking about what ifs and grabbed his phone to call his best friend. It only rang twice until he answered his cell.

“Hey, Peter. Everything alright? What did she say?” Ned seemed on edge.

“She said yes! I’m good to go. She even signed it already.” Peter was over the moon. Ned also was excited. 

“Perfect! That means we will be touring Oscorp on Tuesday. Can you believe it?” 

“Honestly, no. Just imagine how rare this opportunity is given to high schoolers. And we are the lucky ones. There is no way I could believe it.” Peter let himself fall onto his bed and stared at the ceiling. 

“But we are. This is going to be so freaking awesome!” It sounded like Ned was jumping around in his room. 

“Careful, dude. Don’t want to hurt yourself,” Peter grinned. “Did your mom sign it already?” 

Ned huffed. “That was the first thing I asked her to do. Even before saying hi. Come to think of it, that might have been a bit rude. Remind me to say sorry later today.”

“You got it. Ehm, Ned?” Peter was suddenly a bit more agitated again. “You think I could crash at your place today?”

“Sure. Why though? Did something happen?” Concern was clearly in his voice.

“No, no. Nothing of that sort. I just don’t want to bother May anymore for today. I feel like I’ve crossed the line for now and I don’t want to make her mad.” He decided to not tell his friend about being scared of her. He didn’t need to know for now. He was worried enough as it is. He might tell him later though.

“Okay, cool. You know you are always welcome here. Heck, my mom already thinks of you like her own son. I bet she’d be happy if you came for dinner. I’d just have to tell her first. So, when are you coming?” Ned already left his room to talk to his mother. 

“How about I leave right now? I mean it’s already late. And that way we can still finish our building contest.” Peter visibly relaxed. He could always rely on his friend.

“Sure. Wait a second, I’ll ask her.” Ned turned away from the phone to ask his mother. “Mom?” Peter heard him say. “Is it okay if Peter stays the night today?” There was a moment of silence. He couldn’t hear what his friend’s mother was saying and was, therefore, getting nervous. “Now.” Ned seemed to have answered a question. “Okay, I’ll tell him. Thanks, mom.” 

Ned put the phone back to his ear. “Everything’s cool. She asked me to tell you that today’s lasagna for dinner.” He laughed. “It’s almost like she knew you were coming today.” 

Ned was right. His mother knew how much Peter liked her lasagna and so she almost always made her lasagna whenever he came over for dinner. He loved spending time at Ned’s. It felt like he was with his family. Not that he could actually compare it to his family since he only had his aunt left. But regardless it felt like this was his best shot at having a family.

“Awesome,” Peter finally said. “I’ll be over in 30 then.” 

“Take your time. Dinner isn’t for another 1,5 hours. I’ll get everything ready in the meantime.” He started shuffling through his room. 

“Got it. Tell your mom thanks, okay? I’ll see you then,” he said and hung up the call. 

“Thank god,” Peter murmured while quickly gathering the things he was going to need for tonight and the next day. He was more than relieved that he could stay with Ned for today. It was still very difficult for Peter to admit that he was indeed scared of his aunt. It seemed rather ridiculous to him actually. After all, all she did was ignoring him and smiling creepily. He felt like a scaredy-cat. 

He sighed while grabbing his backpack. “Not now,” he told himself. In order to leave the house, he had to go through the living room, where his aunt was probably still at. And he did not want to appear scared to May. So instead he stopped what he was doing and took a deep breath. He could do it. 

Peter didn’t think twice when the moment to leave came. He grabbed his things and rushed out of his room. As expected, May was on the living room couch, staring at a wall. It was honestly freaky, but Peter didn’t want to stop to think about the situation. Instead, he quickly made his way across the room and shot a short “I’ll be at Ned’s tonight,” toward his aunt. 

She didn’t say anything but from the corner of his eyes, he could see her evilly grinning as the front door closed behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See? I promised.
> 
> I'm actually still surprised at the response my first chapter got. So, thank you for that :)
> 
> See you next week with chapter 3 which will be their field trip to Oscorp.


	3. Field trip to Oscorp

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter's class finally goes on their much-anticipated field trip. But in the end, everything went wrong.

Staying at Ned’s for the night was a great idea, Peter decided, since he was still agitated when he reached his friend’s front door. The image of May sitting on the couch and smiling like a psychopath was branded on his mind. He doubted he’ll forget about it anytime soon. So, he tried his best to not think about it and instead focused on the field trip next week.

Ned and Peter had a great time. They finished their building contest which surprisingly Ned won. Peter originally was farther along his build but messed up a few times, not being able to concentrate very well, therefore giving Ned the opportunity to surpass him. They kept on laughing and having fun until late at night when Ned’s mother told them to go to sleep because they still had school in the morning. 

After that day, Peter spend most of his time after school with Ned. He was reluctant to go home and see May. So, he tried his best at staying away. 

He was so occupied with his task of not seeing his aunt that he didn’t realize the Monday before the field trip arrived. 

“Are you all excited for tomorrow?” Their teacher asked. The students cheered and couldn’t contain their thrill. It was obvious that everyone was more than happy. The field trip was the talk of the school. Seniors were jealous that the freshmen were allowed to go on this trip, and they weren’t. But nobody actually blamed them. It was known throughout the school that the smartest students of Midtown were freshmen. The decathlon team even consisted solely of the younger students. Still, there was jealousy in the air.

“That’s tomorrow already?” Peter leaned over to his right were Ned was seated.

His friend was grinning like a Cheshire cat. “Yep,” he said while popping the p. “I can’t believe we actually get to go. I mean Oscorp, dude.” 

Peter had the same look on his face. “I know, right?”

The teacher cleared his throat. “Alright. There are still some safety precautions I am required to tell you about before we leave tomorrow morning.” He smiled at the class.

“First of all, you all need to stay close to the group. If you can’t see me, look for our tour guide. They will be with us at all times. Also, you are not allowed to touch anything under any circumstances. There probably will be a lot of dangerous chemicals in the labs we will get to see, so please be careful. I can only do so much as your teacher, but I trust you guys. Let’s enjoy our trip as much as possible!” He smiled and closed his notebook. 

“I think that’s all for now. We will meet in front of the school tomorrow morning. The bus will leave at 8 am, so please be on time. Also, if you haven’t handed in your signed permission slip, please do so now, or give them to me tomorrow morning. If you don’t have them by tomorrow, you won’t be allowed to come with us on this trip.” 

Dread crept upon the faces of some students who apparently didn’t hand in the form yet. Peter was glad that he already turned his in the very first day. He did not even want to think about still having to confront May about the trip. He was more than just glad he immediately did it on the day they were informed about everything. 

This was again the last class of the day. The last class before they got to go to their one in a lifetime field trip. 

“Dude, I can’t wait,” Ned told Peter once their teacher was done talking. “I definitely won’t be able to sleep tonight.”

Peter nodded. “Me too. This is going to be crazy. Want to hang out again today?”

“Sure, I don’t see why not.”

Like often in the last few days, Peter was glad to be able to call Ned his best friend. These days they spend almost every breathing moment together. And Peter knew that Ned was suspecting something was going on at his home. Although Peter wanted to tell his friend about the newest developments regarding his aunt, he was scared about what would happen. So, he didn’t. 

 

The day passed in the blink of an eye and before they knew it was time for their field trip. Peter was practically bouncing up and down in his room, ready to go to school. He couldn’t wait anymore. 

May already left for the day seeing as she had the early shift that morning, so he was glad he didn’t have to rush through the apartment to get to school. Everything was so much more relaxed when May wasn’t at home. Though Peter still felt a slight tingle in his body. It seemed like it wanted to warn him about something. But he did not care. He pushed the dread aside and left for school.

Ned was already waiting for him beside the yellow school bus. He was waving as soon as he spotted his best friend. The others were currently boarding the bus, though it seemed Peter wasn’t the last one to arrive. He sprinted the last few meters to greet his best friend. 

“So, what do you think we’ll get to see on the tour?” Ned curiously asked while they were also stepping on the bus. 

“I don’t know. Hopefully some labs and things they are working on at the moment.” Peter grinned. 

This field trip was the only thing Peter was excited about. The worry about his aunt took basically all enjoyment out of his life at the moment. He could only hope she would get back to her usual behavior after a while, so he didn’t have to worry about this issue anymore. He was also concerned about May herself. He wanted her to be happy. Now even more so than before. He felt that if she was happier, he wouldn’t have to be so scared of her anymore. But somehow, he knew that wasn’t going to happen. Instead, he suspected it would be getting worse and worse as time moved on. 

“I guess we will have to wait and see,” Ned huffed.

“Yeah, probably,” Peter agreed. “Though I wouldn’t expect too much. I mean they can’t let some random students see their ultra-secret projects.”

“But imagine if they’d show us! That’d be so cool!” By now Ned was fanboying about all possible things they would maybe see on their tour.

“Still.”

 

The drive to Oscorp was unexpectedly short. Traffic was pretty good, so they had no issues arriving at the building. Their chaperone teacher Mr. Stallard guided the class to meet their tour guide.

 

The tour itself was certainly awesome. They’ve seen so much; it was almost unbelievable.  
That was until everything went wrong. 

They were looking at a display of genetically altered spiders when Peter suddenly felt a sharp pain in the back of his neck. He winced at the unexpected sensation and pressed his hand on the spot the pain originated from. There he could feel a bump forming and the skin heating up. He withdrew his hand only to see a tiny spider resting in his palm. Shocked he dropped the small arachnid and stepped on it. He hated spiders with a passion and couldn’t stand them. 

“Dude, you alright?” Ned worriedly whispered in Peter’s ear, seemingly noticing his antics. 

“Yeah, yeah, sure.” He quickly dismissed his friend’s worry. “Nothing’s wrong.”

The pain from his neck started spreading throughout his whole body. First, his head started throbbing. Then his chest begun to tighten, his breathing quickened.  
Peter was starting to feel overwhelmed by these pains. He grew tired and wanted to lay down. It almost seemed like he was in the middle of getting the flu. He felt terrible.

“How much longer do you think the trip will be?” He shakenly asked his friend who simply shrugged. 

“Don’t know. Looking at the time probably only like 30 more minutes.” He looked at Peter who by now started sweating.

“Are you sure you are okay? You frankly look horrible.” He put a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “Should I tell someone?”

“The trip is almost over anyway so I don’t see any reason why you should. But thanks. I guess I’m just getting sick.” He swayed a little.

Peter was worried. He had no idea what was happening and started to internally freak out. He knew what getting sick felt like and what he was experiencing at that moment was developing quicker than any normal flu did. 

“You really don’t seem okay, Peter.” Ned stopped him. Peter couldn’t focus on what their tour guide was saying. He was too preoccupied on not falling over.

“Peter?” Ned put his hand on his friend’s forehead but quickly withdrew it. “You are literally burning up. I think you should go home.” He was about to leave to tell Mr. Stallard about Peter’s condition when Peter grabbed his arm. 

“Don’t. ‘M fine. Wanna stay.” He swayed and strengthened the grip on Ned’s arm. “No going home.”

Ned was growing more and more concerned. 

“Dude, I don’t want you to die on me.”

“Won’t.”

“Okay. You know what? I won’t say anything just yet, but I’ll take you home after. And I swear, I’ll bring you to the hospital if you get any worse. You can bet your life on it.” He put his arm around Peter to support him. 

“Thanks.” Peter tried his best to sound coherent but had more trouble to do so than he wanted to admit. He felt like he was dying. His body was getting hotter by the second and his vision started to blur. He couldn’t focus on his surroundings anymore. 

The rest of the field trip Peter didn’t notice. He was too far gone to care. Ned stayed by his side and helped him whenever Peter needed him. 

That was until he suddenly started slipping from his grip. He stumbled over his own feet only to crumble down. Ned was trying his best to keep Peter standing, but the dead weight he now had to carry was too much for him to handle. He called out to his teacher while shaking his friend.

“Peter!” he cried. 

Mr. Stallard, as well as the tour guide, came running as soon as they saw them on the ground. They called him, asked him to stay awake, but Peter couldn’t hear them. The pain was too much for him to tolerate.

The last thing he saw before drifting into the sweet release of nothingness was Ned leaning over him and saying something he couldn’t make out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was shorter than the first two and I'm sorry about that. But I'm moving next week and have quite a bit to prepare. Also, my keyboard has some issues currently which makes writing pretty difficult.  
> Though I've got the next chapter completely outlined and I hope I'll update it on time too. But since next week is moving week it could very well be delayed a few days. 
> 
> Anyways, I hope you enjoyed chapter 3 of Radioactive cocktails taste bitter^^


	4. Waking up different

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter wakes up in a hospital and is greeted by a concerned May.

A rhythmic sound started to creep its way into Peter’s subconsciousness. It was accompanied by a loud and frequent beeping noise as well as a broken rushing sound. The noises were barely noticeable to the boy. He tried to move but couldn’t. He could not even move his fingers. It didn’t take long for him to be too exhausted to keep trying to move and he drifted back into unconsciousness.

The next time he woke up the sounds were a lot more prominent. He could not only hear the same sounds like the last time but also people pacing around. The shuffling of rubber soles against linoleum was an awful sound Peter decided. He wanted to move away from all the noise.

After another round of trying he finally was able to move. It started with his left pointer finger and gradually moved to his feet. After accomplishing that he was determined to open his eyes. 

He was greeted with bright white lights shining on him and his surroundings. He noticed various machines placed around the room which he finally realized was a hospital room. 

Peter couldn’t remember as to why he was in a hospital or how he got there. He started to panic. He felt like he was choking. His whole body hurt, and he had no idea why. 

Suddenly a woman was beside his bed and tried calming him down.

“You are okay, Peter,” she said. “You are in the Mount Sinai Kravis Children’s Hospital. You got very sick on a field trip and your teacher had to call an ambulance. This is the ICU. We had to put a tube down your throat to help you breathe, that’s why you are choking a bit currently. You have to try and relax a little. I will call the doctor really quick and he’ll tell you more.”

She smiled at Peter before she turned around and left the room.

Again, he was alone and this time even more confused than before. What had happened? He vaguely remembered suddenly not feeling well and hurting. 

“Hello, Peter,” a new voice drew his attention to the door. There stood a man in his late thirties wearing a lab coat and holding a clipboard. Peter frowned.

“I bet you are confused.” He walked to stand beside his bed. 

“It has been a rough couple of days for you. When you were brought in on Tuesday you had a pretty high fever. At the highest point, it went all the way up to 108°F (42,3°C). You also stopped breathing then. We honestly thought you wouldn’t make it. But you are a fighter, kid. You are out of the woods, for now, so we are going to relieve you of that awful tube and take it from there. How does that sound?” He smiled. 

Peter didn’t know if the doctor wanted a response or not, so he blinked.

“You also have a visitor waiting outside. Are you up for it?” He nodded

 

A few minutes later he was freed from the ventilator. The nurse who was with him then went outside to get who was waiting for him. 

Peter looked at the ceiling wondering how much time has passed. The doctor never told him what day it was today.

“Oh my god, dude. You scared the shit out of me.” Ned walked through the door and took a seat beside the bed. 

“Hey, Ned,” Peter gasped. His voice was hoarse with all the irritation his throat had to go through. 

“I don’t really wanna say I told you, but I told you. But never mind that. How are you?” He leaned on the bed.

“Never been better.” It wasn’t even much of a lie. Peter felt good all things considered. 

“What exactly happened?” he asked.

“Well, you suddenly started to act weird but said you were okay. But a few minutes later you just fainted. That really scared me, dude. Mr. Stallard called 911 and they brought you here. When they said you stopped breathing, I thought I lost you. I felt so guilty for not saying anything when I wanted to.” He looked down.

“They called May later that day. She came but looked kinda … mad?” He said.

Peter was confused. If they called May, why wasn’t she here?

“Are you sure you told me everything about her?” Ned pushed.

“Actually no.” Peter wanted to tell him everything. He felt guilty for not telling him before the trip. 

“The day I told her about the field trip she acted so weird. She just stared at the walls and ignored me. And then when I left to spend the night at yours, she had this strange grin on her face. Ned, I’m scared of her. I know I shouldn’t be, but I don’t know. This whole thing just seems wrong.” Peter looked at his friend only to see concern forming.

“We should tell someone.” 

“No! No way.” He shook his head. “She is the only family I have left. Even when I’m scared, I can’t leave her alone. I’m not the only one who lost so much. I might have lost my parents, but I can’t even remember them. She lost her sister and her brother-in-law and then had to take me in. I feel bad for her.”

“But Peter, if she’s doing something to you, you have to tell someone.”

“That’s the thing. She isn’t doing anything. I’m just getting this strange vibe from her. She is a nice person but sometimes she has these moments when she’s ignoring me, or she seems a bit angry. But I don’t think we have to worry about that.” He coughed. Talking so much was still exhausting especially considering he didn’t use his voice in a while. That reminded him he never asked how long he was unconscious for.

“Ned? What day is it?”

“It’s Friday. You’ve been out of commission since Tuesday. Everyone at school is worried about you. The teachers are asking me about you.”

“I was unconscious for three days?” he asked. 

“Not just unconscious. They put you in an artificial coma, dude.”

“Coma?” It seemed ridiculous.

“They thought you were going to die. I mean you stopped breathing. They said it was necessary to keep you going.”

“But I feel fine? Okay, my throat hurts a tiny bit, but other than that? Nothing.”

“I bet the doctors will ask you about that later. But for now, you should still be resting. You’ve been through hell and back. I’ll see you tomorrow?”

Peter nodded. “See you. Thanks for coming by.” 

And he was all alone again.  
It still seemed bizarre that he was in a coma for three days.

He looked around the room once more. The first thing Peter noticed wasn’t anything in the room itself. It was the fact that he could see well at all. He wasn’t wearing his glasses and could still make out the writing on a whiteboard on the other side of the room. It was tiny. That confused him even more. A normal human wasn’t supposed to be able to read that. Just what was going on?

He shook his head confused and tried focusing on something else. He could worry about being able to see 100 times better later.

He decided to test his hearing. If his eyesight suddenly got so much better maybe his other senses had a kickstart as well. 

He closed his eyes and concentrated on the noises around him. He could hear the machines beside his bed beeping, he could hear nurses talking in the adjacent room. He then heard a car door close in the parking lot. Peter opened his eyes again. He checked the windows in his room to see if they were closed. They were. How could he hear the door of a car closing that was at least a hundred meters away and additionally closed off by a wall or two?

Peter was dumbfounded. Not only seemed his senses to have gotten a major upgrade, but his health apparently did too. He was sure he was supposed to feel way worse than he did. The only thing bothering him was his scratchy throat and even that was close to nothing.

Suddenly he heard another set of footsteps getting closer. It didn’t take long until they reached his door. There stood May accompanied by another doctor. She immediately went to grab Peter’s hand. 

“Oh my! I’m so happy to see you awake again.” She smiled warmly. “How are you doing, Pete?”

He was even more confused now than when he found out his senses were improved. Why was May suddenly acting so wholeheartedly? Was it because there was another person there? It has been years since she called him Pete.

“I’m feeling great.” He looked away from his aunt and saw the doctor smiling too. “When can I leave?”

“Not so fast young man. You just woke up from a coma not too long ago. We have to keep you here for at least one more night. Tomorrow we can talk about you getting released again, but we’ll have to see. I’m glad to see you doing so well though.” He looked at the whiteboard beside the door. 

“It’s impressive you are coherent enough to talk to us. Usually, it takes a few hours for patents to recognize familiar faces after they woke up from a coma.”

That seemed to be another thing Peter could add to his list of unusual things happening to him. He was recovering faster than he should. 

He wanted to leave this hospital as quickly as possible. Somehow Peter had the suspicion that being different in the ways he observed over the past hour wasn’t going to do him any good in this institution. He had an idea as to what was going on. But he wanted to check that over once he was alone at home. He felt the fewer people knew about it the better. He could probably tell Ned, but May was out of the question. If she found out about what had happened and how it influenced him, he did not know what she would do. 

“I will leave you two alone now. Oh, and Peter, I’m glad you are okay.” The doctor grinned as he walked out of the room. 

“Hello, May?” Peter flinched. He was still uncertain about how he should behave around her.

“You scared me,” she huffed. “When your teacher called me, I started panicking. I’m sure I broke all traffic laws on my way to the hospital. And then they told me you most likely wouldn’t make it. I didn’t want to lose you too.” She looked down.

What was happening?

“I’m sorry about that. But I feel fine now. You don’t have to worry about me anymore. Even the doctors said I’m better.” He observed her. 

“I know, Pete, but you can’t blame me for worrying about my only nephew.” She smiled.

This whole scenario felt wrong. He didn’t quite know why she was behaving so differently all of a sudden, but he hoped his near death might have shaken her out of her recent oddities. There was hope, Peter decided. If May really had changed because of what happened, maybe they could go back to the way they were 9 years ago. Without being scared and looking out for one another. It sounded nice. But Peter didn’t think that this incident would have any impact at all. He guessed that May would be back to her usual self when they were back at home again. 

“I really want to leave tomorrow. Do you think you could ask them to release me earlier?” He wanted to use the opportunity of having a calm May by his side. Maybe she could convince the staff to let him go home earlier.

“I will talk to them. But first, you should try and sleep some more. It’s been a long three days for all of us.” She smiled at him.

Peter was still puzzled by her antics but decided to forget about it for now. 

May was right and he was tired, so he closed his eyes and tried to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I honestly can't believe I made it in time. I was early even. On Sunday I started chapter 5 so you will get to see that next week if everything runs smoothly. 
> 
> And I have to say it again. I'm really happy with the response this story is getting. Especially considering it is a mature story. Thank you all for your Kudos, subscriptions and of course the comments.  
> Thank you, Spacewalrus. You made my day^^


	5. Back home again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter started noticing weird things and checked them out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys. 
> 
> The chapter is a little late, I know and I'm sorry. But after moving last week I got sick x.x I then tried my best to punch out a chapter but oh well. It's not as lengthy as the others and I personally don't like it as much. But anyways, I hope you enjoy^^

“Hey, Pete, wake up.” A light shake brought Peter back into reality. 

“I talked to the doctors and they said you could leave today. Isn’t that great?” May leaned over him grinning.

“W- What?” He groggily rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. “Oh. Thank you.”

Peter felt considerably better than he did the day before. His throat stopped hurting and he couldn’t register any pain anywhere else. It was odd, that much was clear, but Peter decided to postpone thinking about all the weird things to when he was alone in his bedroom. 

“Did they say anything as to when we can leave exactly?”

“Not quite. I asked and they told me they will come by sometime before or around lunch.” He looked to the clock hanging above his hospital room door. It was 8 a.m. currently. 

“Could you maybe hand me my phone?” She looked around the room until she spotted his backpack. “In there?” He nodded.

He wanted to text Ned and ask him if he already knew when he was going to come visit. Peter felt bad thinking about leaving before Ned got to the hospital only to realize that he was long gone. 

May passed him his phone and he started typing his message.

“Are you excited to leave?” May asked the boy who was still busy texting.

“Huh? Oh yes of course. I don’t think there is anyone in this world who actually likes being in the hospital. Well as a patient obviously. I guess the doctors and nurses like it here otherwise they wouldn’t be working in a hospital.”

A hand petting his hair drove him to look up again. 

“You know, I’m very glad you are okay.” He frowned. He still couldn’t understand why May was suddenly so affectionate. It seemed wrong. He didn’t want to say anything though in case she changed again, so he kept quiet.

“I’d be very sad if you were to all of the sudden die from some illness.” She smiled. 

Why did she specifically say illness? It almost seemed as if she wouldn’t be sad if he was to die from some other cause. He shook his head. Again, he reminded himself to think about this whole situation when he was back at home. 

“I won’t die on you, don’t worry.”

He looked back at his phone to check if Ned already answered his questions. He didn’t. Instead, he opted to tell Ned to just come to their apartment later that day. It was of no use to have his friend visiting him in the hospital when they are only going to be there together for 20 minutes or so. 

 

Peter looked up above the door for the umpteenth time to check the hour. It has been three hours since he woke up and by now, he was on pins and needles, eager to get home. May was at the nurses’ office to ask once more about Peter’s discharge.

Again, he heard steps outside of his room. 

By now he was a little bit more used to the broadened input he had to endure every breathing moment. He noticed he could differentiate the various footsteps and match them with all sorts of people. The doctors tend to have a heavier step, nurses drag their feet and visitors portray uncertainty by either hesitating or rushing through the halls. May was light on her feet, seemingly not bothered by anything, maybe even delighted. Therefore, hers stood out among the others.

The steps he heard were May’s. She opened the door about fifteen seconds after Peter first noticed someone was nearing his room. 

She smiled as she walked across the room to sit beside Peter once more.

“The head nurse said she’d send a doctor down soon to check you over one last time and then we could leave. She was annoyed I came to ask again. I bet that’s why she changed her mind about talking to a doctor so suddenly. Annoying adult strikes again.” She grinned and threw a fist in the air. 

“So, like a few more minutes?” He questioned. 

“I guess. She didn’t give an estimate, but I assume they are going to be here within the next ten minutes.” She pointed at the by now all too familiar clock. 

“I’m going to start packing your stuff. That way we won’t be hold back because of your clothes. Now that would be a bother, wouldn’t it?” She sprung up from her seat and began to organize Peter’s belongings while humming. 

It was honestly freaky Peter noted. May behaved as if she was a completely different person. He watched her movements from the corner of his eye while trying to seem oblivious. 

Peter could barely wait any longer. He wanted to leave the hospital this instant and seclude himself in his bedroom. 

Thus, excitement was visible on Peter’s face once the doctors gave him the all clear to be discharged. 

 

“I have to go and get some groceries. You think you’ll be alright in the meantime?” May asked while standing at the front door of their apartment. They haven’t been home for three minutes when May started to pack her things once more.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Don’t worry about me. Take your time.” He wanted to be alone. He wanted to have the space to think about everything he pushed aside until now. The strange developments that seemed to have turned his life upside down. He needed to know for sure what changed. And to know that he needed to investigate.

He went and locked himself inside his room. There he sat at his desk and fished out some papers and a pen and started writing down what he noticed in the hospital.

Advanced sight, check. Advanced hearing, check. 

The chair creaked while Peter leaned back into it. 

“How could I test the other senses? There really isn’t a way to compare smell and taste to the way it was before.” He sighed. 

He went to grab his phone to go ahead and text Ned once more when he realized something odd about his hands. He stopped and focused on his fingertips. There he could make out microscopic barbs covering his whole hand. 

“What the?” He stood up. 

How did he not notice that before?

He almost dropped the phone in shock. Almost. To his surprise, the phone didn’t fall to its tragic demise but stuck to his open palm. He looked at it for a moment before grabbing it with his other hand and pulling it off his palm. 

It released surprisingly easily. 

He put the phone back on his desk. This time it didn’t stick to his hand. He frowned and rubbed his hands together to check if they were sticky. They weren’t.

He suddenly flinched and turned towards his door. Something drew him to the apartment’s front door. Confused he got up to check if anything was going on. 

His neck tingled as he stood in front of the door. He took a deep breath and opened it only to see a startled Ned with his finger almost touching the doorbell.

“What the hell, dude?” Ned stepped back. “You scared the shit out of me.”


	6. AN

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mental health is a biach

Hey guys.   
This is not an update.   
I have to inform you about a small break I will be taking though. Something is going on currently and I’m not able to focus on the story very well. I will try to keep on writing anyways, but I’ll only upload them when I’m better.  
I hope that’s ok with you.  
I'm very sorry.


End file.
